Gimbal

Gimbal is a 2D top-down space shooter that stands out due to its deep ship-building mechanics, allowing players to customize vessels with various parts, weapons, and thrusters. The game features realistic physics and ballistics, making ship design and combat engaging and strategic. Players progress by earning ranks and unlocking new parts, culminating in a "Mastermind" mode with unlimited budget for massive ships.

Multiplayer is the core focus, with several game modes like deathmatch and racing. However, the player base has significantly dwindled, leaving mostly bots or small private matches. Despite this, the game offers robust server hosting options and a supportive developer community. The graphics are appealing for a 2D game, and controls are highly customizable. The main drawbacks include limited parts variety, a low level cap, and lack of single-player content, which limit long-term replayability. Still, at a low price point, it offers solid value for fans of ship customization and multiplayer combat.

Highlights

Players praise the extensive ship customization as the game's strongest feature, enabling creative and strategic designs that influence combat styles.

The realistic physics and ballistics add depth to gameplay, requiring thoughtful ship construction and piloting skills.

The customizable controls and multiple game modes enhance player engagement.

Graphics and art style are considered appealing and fitting for the genre.

The developer's responsiveness and active forums foster a positive community experience, despite the low player count.

Criticisms

The primary criticism is the lack of a strong player base, which severely hampers the multiplayer experience.

The limited number of parts and low level cap restrict ship-building creativity and progression, leading to a short lifespan for many players.

The absence of a dedicated single-player mode leaves players reliant on bots, which are often too easy or too difficult and lack variety.

Some users note occasional performance issues and lag, especially with large ships.

The game's price is viewed as steep given the limited content and player activity, and modding support is missing, which could have extended its longevity.